How to Make a Fishtank Garden

Producing an attractive fish tank garden that is both pleasant to look at and easy to care for can be accomplished by incorporating a variety of succulent houseplants into the aquarium, then simply providing enough light and water according to their individual needs for the plants to thrive. Succulents make good additions to a fish tank aquarium because they are easy to care for, and the wide variety of both flowering and non-flowering cactus contributes to a fantastic diversity of plant life that you can add to as you find new specimens you want to add to your aquarium.

Things You'll Need

  • Fish tank
  • Aquarium gravel
  • Large decorative stones
  • Aquarium hood with plant growth light
  • House light timer
  • Variety of succulent plants
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Instructions

    • 1

      Fill the base of the aquarium with at least three inches of aquarium gravel substrate. You can also use sand, if you wish, particularly if you wish to replicate a desert scene due to the presence of the cactus plants.

    • 2

      Add larger decorative stones to the aquarium, if you wish, to enhance the visual interest of the aquarium. Place the larger stones in the back of the aquarium, and the smaller stones in the front.

    • 3

      Position the cactus plants in the aquarium. You can remove them from their individual pots, if you wish, but be certain to plant them so their root balls are sunk below the level of the gravel or sand in the aquarium. Like the large stones, position the larger cactus plants at the back of the aquarium and the smaller or shorter plants at the front. Be sure to intersperse the flowering and non-flowering plants to provide as natural looking a scene as possible.

    • 4

      Top the aquarium with a light that replicates daylight as much as possible. These lights are available in pet supply stores and are labeled as "plant growth lights."

    • 5

      Install a light timer into your wall socket and set the timer for the amount of light your plants will need to thrive. This information can be found on the tag included with the individual plants. This is necessary to offset the fact that the cactus plants are positioned indoors, where they can't receive as much light as they need throughout the day. You can also use this to make certain your garden is turned on when you come home from work and is turned back off once you've gone to bed.

    • 6

      Water the garden according to the instructions on the individual plants. If your plants only require watering once per month or less, then follow these instructions to keep your aquarium garden healthy.